Is there a more used and more applicable saying than the one in the heading? As if your life starts with it, and than it follows you all the time, as if it wants to protect you from unpleasant moments. All in good time, the first love, the first bad mark at school, the first misunderstanding with the parents, teachers, environment...And so it goes that in life, consciously or unconsciously we accept this catchword. It is probably because we understand its advantage, we can replace with it a fifteen-minute explanation on why something shouldn't or mustn't be done right now, and besides that, you needn't say no.

The Union Of Macedonian Women Organizations (UMWO) starts its animation in public, catching the influential state, political, non-party, civic, business, media and other factors’ attention, to realize another initiative prepared in advance, this time adopting a quote of 40% for both sexes on the candidates’ lists for the forthcoming local elections. Women, they say in UMWO, are 51% of the population and the electorate of the country, but only 18.3% are represented in the Parliament, 8.4% are advisors in the municipality councils, and there are only 3 women mayors in Macedonia.

In our country, besides the great number of negative events that are part of our everyday life and affect us as citizens, parents, friends etc., there is a situation that is a blot on the landscape, throw us in despair and makes us think how to deal with it.

In the month of April, the civic association MOST attracted the public attention with its activities by participating in the Campaign for monitoring the early presidential elections 2004, which it implemented by itself and carried it out in for segments: motivating the citizens to check their data in the unique election list, recruitment of volunteers, monitoring the campaigns of the of the presidential candidates and their headquarters on the day of elections

In this edition of the Civic World, we dedicate the column FORUM to the actual changes in the Macedonian criminal law, which sanction the family violence for the first time in our country. Their experiences, opinions, suggestions and attitudes concerning this problem present the Women Civic Initiative ANTIKO and the Women Association "Prestige". The Forum is also open for you on the web-site www.graganskisvet.org.mk and www.civicworld.org.mk where you should register with your name and surname and the name of your association, if member of any.